White Sox: 3 players who definitely won’t be back with Chicago in 2021
. SP. Chicago White Sox. Gio Gonzalez. 47. player. 128
The Chicago White Sox aren’t going to bring back Gio Gonzalez either. They already declined to bring him back in 2021 in the same way that they aren’t bringing Edwin Encarnacion back. It didn’t work out as well for Gonzalez on the mound in 2020 the way that he (or they) thought that it would. He had a pretty good career but it was clear that the White Sox are better off without him on the team.
He had a negative impact on the 2020 White Sox (-0.3 WAR). He went 1-2 with a 4.83 ERA and 1.863 WHIP. It was clear during the season that he wasn’t going to work out long term so they cut ties with him. They could, in theory, still bring him back on a different deal but it doesn’t seem likely.
The reason that it doesn’t seem likely is that there are plenty of better options. It would be much better to use guys like Michael Kopech, Dane Dunning, or Garrett Crochet amongst others so they can get used to the big leagues rather than trotting out a guy like Gio Gonzalez. There are so many good arms coming up and they are going to start getting their chance. Gio Gonzalez deserves respect but he is no longer a good fit for the White Sox.